Krejcikova suffers injury scare ahead of Wimbledon defense
EASTBOPURNE, UK: Barbora Krejcikova faces a race to prove her fitness in time to defend the Wimbledon title after the Czech pulled out of the Eastbourne Open with a thigh injury on Thursday.
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Mbappe files harassment complaint against PSG and judicial officials are investigating
PARIS: Kylian Mbappe has accused Paris Saint-Germain of moral harassment in a legal filing, the Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed on Thursday.The Real Madrid star is at odds with his former club, arguing PSG owes him €55 million ($61 million) in unpaid wages.Mbappe is also unhappy with the way he was treated by the Ligue 1 club when the France captain was sidelined before the 2023-24 season, following his decision not to extend his club contract.The prosecutor’s office said Mbappe is “denouncing the ‘lofting’ he claimed to have been subjected to at Paris Saint-Germain.” The word lofting is used in France to describe a practice that involves isolating a player from the main squad for sporting, administrative, or disciplinary reasons.Mbappe joined Real Madrid last summer on a free transfer after scoring a club-record 256 goals in seven years at PSG, which won the Champions League without him this year.Mbappe’s relationship with PSG ended amid deep tensions, and some fans booed him in his last home game at Parc des Princes. PSG felt let down by Mbappe after offering him the most lucrative contract in club history when he signed a new contract in 2022.But Mbappe was frustrated because he felt promises to sign key players were not kept.
Bivol takes Beterbiev’s light-heavyweight crown in Riyadh classic
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia: Dmitry Bivol dethroned Artur Beterbiev as undisputed light-heavyweight champion in a thrilling contest in Riyadh in the early hours of Sunday. Four months after their first classic encounter, 34-year-old Bivol won a majority points decision against his Russian compatriot, six years his senior. It was Beterbiev’s first defeat in 22 pro fights but Bivol was a worthy winner after two judges gave him the decision by 116-112 and 115-113 with the third seeing it as a 114-114 draw. “I didn’t have as much pressure like last time. I just wanted to work from the first round until the end of the 12th.
Olmo helps Barcelona grind out win at Las Palmas and keep La Liga league
BARCELONA, Spain: Dani Olmo scored after coming off the bench to help Barcelona win 2-0 at Las Palmas on Saturday and stay top of the Spanish league. Lamine Yamal linked up with Olmo to find a seam in the hosts’ defense in the 62nd minute. Olmo took Yamal’s threaded pass, shifted the ball to his left foot to open an angle around a defender, and fired the ball in off the underside of the bar. While Olmo went on at halftime, Ferran Torres only played the final minutes and drilled in a second goal from angle in stoppage time. Barcelona avenged a shock home loss to the Canary Islands club in November as it ensured it will spend another week atop the standings. The team coached by Hansi Flick is one point ahead of Atletico Madrid, which won 3-0 at Valencia earlier on Saturday.
Ittihad stroll past Hilal in top of the table showdown
JEDDAH: Al-Ittihad took a big step toward the Saudi Pro League (SPL) title on Saturday with a 4-1 win over Al-Hilal in the long-awaited top of the table clash. The victory in Jeddah puts the Tigers seven points clear of their Riyadh rivals with 13 games of the season remaining. The defeat means that Al-Hilal, who strolled to a record 19th championship in 2024, have won just once in their last five games and are struggling to keep pace with Ittihad who have tasted victory in 15 of their last 17 league games. Despite the convincing defeat that came in the end, Al-Hilal took the lead midway through the first half. João Cancelo whipped over a wicked ball from the right and there was Marcos Leonardo to poke it home at the near post for a real poacher’s goal.
Japan’s Forever Young wins $20m Saudi Cup
RIYADH: Japan’s Forever Young hunted down Hong Kong racing royalty Romantic Warrior to land the world’s richest race, the $20 million Saudi Cup in Riyadh on Saturday.
Pakistan coach says fast bowlers key in India clash
DUBAI: Pakistan coach Aaqib Javed on Saturday said his fast bowlers are “match-winners” and will pull out something special against arch-rivals India in their pivotal Champions Trophy clash.
Teenager Mirra Andreeva stuns world No. 2 Iga Swiatek to become youngest semifinalist in Dubai history
DUBAI: World No. 2 Iga Swiatek was sensationally knocked out of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in straight sets on Thursday as the talented teen Mirra Andreeva made history to book a place in the WTA 1000 semifinal for the first time in her career.